Back from 81 pounds

She stands 5 feet 2 and weighs only 93 pounds, but this sliver of a girl can leg-press more than double her body weight and recently took first place in the Teen Bikini category at the NPC Europa Expo in Orlando.

Tiffany ChenPhoto by Philip Podskalan, Hotshotzstudio.com

At age 19, Tiffany Chen’s road to health, fitness and winning competitions hasn’t been easy.

Her mother. Donna Chen. was struck and killed by a drunken driver on Siesta Key last year, sending the teen into a downward spiral.

When I first met Tiffany about a year ago at a health club, she was working out with a fierce determination, attending dance classes and was painfully thin. Her quest for a career in dance was taking a toll and she was already battling physical and emotional issues related to the pressure and competitive nature of ballet.

The sudden loss of her mother accelerated her decline, resulting in a dangerously low weight of 81 pounds and a trip to the hospital.

“At that time I was going through some very hard struggles in my life, " she said. "I had experienced a lot of losses in my family, and I was using fitness as an escape. Unfortunately I didn’t use it in a healthy manner, and I wasn’t able to take care of myself in a great way.”

She realized that her weight was dangerously low and that she needed to change something when her long-time dance instructor told her she wouldn’t be able to perform or participate in activities.

She found a source of inspiration in fitness trainer and competition coach Holly Beck of Evolution Fitness Club. Through her guidance, Chen has gained weight and is on her way to better health.

“I feel like I’m making a journey every day that I show up here and do something right,” she said “whether its nutrition habits or lifting correctly or the correct amount of time in resting properly. I feel like I’m one step closer to my ultimate fitness destiny.”

She stills loves dance, “It's still such a part of me. But at the same time, I found weights. lifting iron, is one of the most empowering things for me and it's helped me so much to get my lifestyle back on track to take care of myself."

Chen added that "Lifting weights makes me feel like I can take control of my life again. It's like literally putting myself back in my place where I feel I control myself, that I take care of myself that I feel I can do anything really. It’s such a great feeling.”

Chen has put on more than 12 pounds.

“Mostly through muscle, “ she said. “And I feel stronger, I feel like I’ve got shapes, but in a beautiful way, and I feel that I’m fuller, but in a way that I’m proud of, and I feel that I have more of a presence in my life, I don’t shrink away anymore.”

Here is her advise to other teenagers going through similar experiences: “I would have to tell them that In order to change, you can't do what you’ve always done, or you’ll get what you have always gotten.”

Chen is currently preparing for her next competition in May, studying for her strength and conditioning certification through the International Sports Sciences Association and plans to attend Duke University in the fall.

If you know of an inspiring person in our community that has changed their life through fitness send me an email: aredmonde@aol.com

Alix Redmonde

Alix Redmonde has been a fitness expert for more than 25 years and has taught fitness on three continents. She has written for magazines including Men’s Exercise, Exercise for Men Only, Fitness, Shape and Elle. She has also appeared on the Food Network, CBNC, WNYW-TV, among others, promoting a healthy lifestyle. Redmonde is coauthor of the book “It’s Great to be Different,” which teaches children confidence, esteem and self-respect.
Redmonde lives in Sarasota with her three dogs, six cats, two doves and a thoroughbred horse.
She can be reached by email

Last modified: May 13, 2013
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